Beauty Wars: The Best Highlighter For Every Category

From reinvented cult-classics to the newbies, we highlight – HAH – the noteworthy ones that deserve your cash and a spot on your cheekbones. Time to get #lit.

by Team Yoyokulala | May 31, 2018

Ever since highlighters went mainstream, we’ve all been blessed with beautifully sparkly cheekbones in all sorts of colours. But there’s no one highlighter that we can coin as the one.

Highlighters are just pure glittery goodness that can come in the form of powders, liquids or creams. Say you’d like to try out a zero-effort glass skin, it’s as easy as adding a few drops of highlighter into your foundation. Or perhaps the dry air is making things difficult, that’s when creams come to the rescue with their moisturising properties. Whatever your skin type or preference, there’s a ton of choices out there.

With so many options available, we get that it’s incredibly hard to pick a favourite. That’s why for this month’s Beauty Wars, we decided to save you the trouble of having to test every every product. Here, we picked six highlighters for six different categories, with some that amassed a giant cult following, to others that are new on the market. Time to get lit.

MOST UNIQUE…

Dew Drops Coconut Gel Highlighter

“The coconut scent of the Dew Drops Coconut Gel Highlighter is pleasant, but not too overwhelming. It spreads out well and blends out really easily under or over foundation. It mixes well with foundation, too. Although, it’s a bit harder to blend over powder because it dries really quickly and might become patchy if you don’t spread it fast enough. The formula doesn’t emphasise on the texture of your skin and isn’t overly metallic. It leaves a nice dewy finish, but the shade is a tad too dark for me and would suit medium to dark skin tones better. ” – Rachel, Team Exhibit.

MOST TIME-SAVING…

Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Luminous Colour

“This may not look like your average highlighter, but the Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Luminous Colour deserves the title of most time-saving with blush, bronzer and highlighter all in one swipe. Like the name suggests, the shine is natural and not overbearing. The different shades of colours also provide depth and dimension in some magical way. Plus, it’s got the signature Chanel scent that just makes application so much nicer.” – Natalyn, Team KULALA’s Writer and Graphic Designer

MOST INTENSE…

NARS Highlighting Powder

“NARS never seems to disappoint, and certainly not with their newest highlighter shade, Fort de France. The highly pigmented, easily buildable formula goes on the skin like a pearlescent gleam. It catches light very well, and is definitely not for the lighthearted. It’s weightless but ultra-shiny, and can go from delicately lit to strobed in just a few swipes. This is one to keep in your makeup pouch, especially for day to night looks.” – Natalyn, Team KULALA’s Writer and Graphic Designer

MOST SHINY…

Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter

“Ah, the cult-favourite and highly sought-after product, the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter. It reflects gold, so it’s perfect for warmer skin-tones, but is slightly more powdery than the average highlighter. Because of that, it’s also well-suited to oilier skin types, and shows up beautifully on the skin without any clumps or chunks.” – Candice, Team KULALA’s Head Writer & Web Manager

MOST DURABLE…

Hourglass Vanish Flash Highlighter Stick

“This was basically the confetti equivalent in the makeup world for me – fun, decadent but also really weightless at the same time. I have combination skin, so the creamy texture of the Hourglass Vanish Flash Highlighting Stick glided on smoothly and lasted through the day. The weightless texture also blurs out any imperfections easily. While the triangular tip helped with the application on smaller points of the face, it actually made it harder to glide on.” – Jaelyn Tan, Team KULALA’s Junior Writer

MOST NATURAL…

Glossier Haloscope

“The Glossier Haloscope is the dewiest looking highlighter that uses crystal extracts and seed oils for a sheen, but never glittery. It’s got a shiny outer rim and a solid vitamin-infused core that’s moisturising and provides that easy glide. This product’s perfect for a no-makeup makeup look, and doesn’t require a brush, too.” – Natalyn, Team KULALA’s Writer and Graphic Designer